If it's about the equipment, wouldn't listening to test tones be just as satisfying as music?

Or even just staring at the gear when it's unplugged?

Don't get me wrong, I love the gear too but I would sell any piece, even if it looked cool and was built well, if I didn't enjoy listening to it.

edit-
Gotta say -there ain't nothing wrong with your approach if it's making you happy. After 9 years on this site I've really seen two different views to this hobby become apparent- The gear in service to the music or the music in service to the gear. I listen to some music because the song or performance is fantastic, even if poorly recorded. I know people who would never consider playing the same music, no matter how good the song, because the poor recording does not show their gears true capability. I think were both still audiophiles, but from opposite directions.

All I did was describe how I have developed this hobby for myself. I have done exactly the same as many others, nothing different or special. I did not say anything about others having to do the same, a claim which you have made up to support your untrue claim about me knocking others and getting snobby.

Well, I did read that you considered Chef's post to be great. Look at the first paragraph of the post which you thought was great. You then bring up the fishing vs eating fish metaphor. We're discussing opinions here and not what others have to or do not have to do.

Was my comment really that off-base? If it was, then excuse me for misunderstanding. Who knows what you mean from here.

If you go to gigs, buy CDs, stop what you are doing sometimes and just listen to the music, then as the thread says, you are enjoying the music.

If then buy a CDP or system or radio or whatever, but without much thought or consideration in what that kit brings to the sound of the music, you are enjoying the music.

If you enjoy the music and start to take an interest in the kit, how different kit sounds, whether cables are important, wonder if another set of headphones would be better with classical music than the ones you already have etc etc, then hifi is now your hobby.

Within the hifi hobby there are numerous different interests, such as those who prefer vinyl, those who built their own amplifiers, those who like the chat etc etc.

My preferences are head-fi and recently the electronics and DIY. I also genuinely like the music, hence my Scandinavian Prog Rock Appreciation thread on this forum. Listening to test tones would soon put me off hifi as a hobby.

I totally understand and respect that others have different particular interests within the hifi hobby in general.

I retract my support for all of Chef's post, if you buy and fly model planes, that is still a hobby, you don't need to make them as well. You are right with that point aimlink and sorry for the misunderstanding.

Once I had lunch with about 6 of the writers from SoundStage.
I asked the question: "Is the artists intent clearly modulated or modified by the quality of reproduction."

To a man, the answer was ,"No."

I believe the music and gear are related something like this:

Experiencing the music is like the meditation.
The gear is like the chair you meditate in.

Good gear is like a comfy recliner, it's so comfortable it's easy to forget all else and enjoy the music.

Bad gear is like a bed of nails. It's more difficult to get past the discomfort, but once you do the meditation is still there. One might even argue that if you can master the bed of nails the quality of your meditation will improve ... even in the recliner. Meaning, if you practice getting past the poor quality of a recording or playback gear, your experience with really great gear and recordings will be all the better for your ability to look past the error and into the art.

If you go to gigs, buy CDs, stop what you are doing sometimes and just listen to the music, then as the thread says, you are enjoying the music.

If then buy a CDP or system or radio or whatever, but without much thought or consideration in what that kit brings to the sound of the music, you are enjoying the music.

If you enjoy the music and start to take an interest in the kit, how different kit sounds, whether cables are important, wonder if another set of headphones would be better with classical music than the ones you already have etc etc, then hifi is now your hobby.

Within the hifi hobby there are numerous different interests, such as those who prefer vinyl, those who built their own amplifiers, those who like the chat etc etc.

My preferences are head-fi and recently the electronics and DIY. I also genuinely like the music, hence my Scandinavian Prog Rock Appreciation thread on this forum. Listening to test tones would soon put me off hifi as a hobby.

I totally understand and respect that others have different particular interests within the hifi hobby in general.

I retract my support for all of Chef's post, if you buy and fly model planes, that is still a hobby, you don't need to make them as well. You are right with that point aimlink and sorry for the misunderstanding.

I really appreciated this. Mucho respect!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyll Hertsens

Once I had lunch with about 6 of the writers from SoundStage.
I asked the question: "Is the artists intent clearly modulated or modified by the quality of reproduction."

To a man, the answer was ,"No."

I believe the music and gear are related something like this:

Experiencing the music is like the meditation.
The gear is like the chair you meditate in.

Good gear is like a comfy recliner, it's so comfortable it's easy to forget all else and enjoy the music.

Bad gear is like a bed of nails. It's more difficult to get past the discomfort, but once you do the meditation is still there. One might even argue that if you can master the bed of nails the quality of your meditation will improve ... even in the recliner. Meaning, if you practice getting past the poor quality of a recording or playback gear, your experience with really great gear and recordings will be all the better for your ability to look past the error and into the art.

It actually brings up a similar topic, that of objective vs subjective issues.

The art is in the perception of it.

It's not the painting on the wall, but the feeling it gives you the artist was going after.

That's on a completely different layer, metaphysics vs physics I suppose.

The problem with DBT as a valuation for an experience
(as opposed to a statistically measureable physical result, as in drug testing)
is that it's hard to put a number on something best described by a poem.

I think the gear and the art are two different hobbies.
Most of my music listening comes from odd streaming sources,
I like to listen to things I've never heard before ---very expensive
and dumb to try to make a collection of music for that.

Even though having exquisite gear isn't all that important for me, I'll still love the gadgetry of it.
So the gear is quite apart from my listening needs really.
In fact, I listen to quite a bit of pink noise, and I enjoy ...
... well, not the noise itself, but how you can use it to analyze things.

I do think there are shopaholics in the hobby though.
I do think people think they can "engineer" a system into "a whole new system" with cables --- which is baloney.
Cables can have an effect --- 10% max, usually more like 2% --- people forget there's a whole world of electronics in them boxes.
(I feel it's the headphone cable itself that's most strongly effective.)

nobody likes to spend his precious money. people buy different gear because they want to experiment until they find their sweet spot and can finaly lay back and enjoy the hobby. experimenting is one of the most important aspects in this hobby.

for me,HIfi was never hearing the music as the composer/engineer intented to be,but just getting the sound i like,shape the sound if you want.
that's the reason i like headphones like RS1 and D5000.

Wouldn't it be a lot cheaper to just play with equalizers and a soundboard? I mean, I totally respect that as a legitimate way of enjoying music, I have no problem with it. It just isn't fidelity by any means. I mean... The definition of the word fidelity precludes that.

I apologise for my model plane example :P It wasn't that greatly chosen. I just mean that if you like looking at model planes as an art, then that's your hobby. If you like them to look at realistic as possible, that's fine too. But you have to define whether you like looking at them, or whether you like building them. If you like looking at them, then you are like someone who likes listening to music. If you like the construction of them in and of itself... Then you should be building them, not just paying people to build them. I mean, to me it doesn't make sense if you buy something completed when the completed product is not what you're interested in (music vs reproduction of music). That's what I meant when I say people would look at me funny... I'm spending my money in the wrong place if I claim to have one hobby, pay from another, and still really my hobby is neither of those. I just want some people to admit they like shopping a little more than they do anything else.

I am just listening to a 90's collection I have at home. it is "made in israel" and the sound quality is not impressive to say the least,but I like the songs so much that I am really having a great time

If I'm listening to my equipment (and I mean really listening, not just playing it), then badly recorded music will annoy me as it sounds especially bad through my phones. However when I'm in the car or something if it sounds decent I'm alright with it